Hope College
EN-10: Community Partnerships

The Lakeshore Cleanup Coalition, formed in 2020 thanks to initial funding from the EPA Trash Free Waters Grant, is a group of organizations in West Michigan working together to cleanup area beaches and rivers and spread awareness about pollution. The Coalition includes the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council, ODC Network, Hope College, Ottawa Conservation District, Ottawa County Parks and Recreation, Allegan Conservation District, and the Kalamazoo River Watershed Council.
Hope College Video: https://youtu.be/PDK-HwflKkA

The group also helped to organize a series of educational events: Pollution Solutions. This is a series of virtual talks that were held in the spring of 2022.
March 10 featured Kyle Hart of the West Michigan Environmental Action Council to to discuss the history of trash pollution in the Grand River and how it impacts us today
March 24 featured Lara Treemore-Spears from Wayne State University to discuss what we know about the problem of plastic and the impacts of microplastics
April 7 featured Erik Petrovskis of Meijer to discuss their efforts to reduce plastic pollution

http://www.macatawaclarity.org/

--Our goal is to remediate the water quality issues of Lake Macatawa and the Macatawa Watershed.
The Director for the Office of Sustainability also serves on the "Project Clarity Advisory Committee."
https://www.hollandsentinel.com/story/news/columns/2022/07/25/lake-macatawa-healthier-since-2012-algae-bloom/10124362002/

--The Director for the Office of Sustainability serves on the planning committee for the annual Water Festival: https://outdoordiscovery.org/education/community-events/macatawa-water-festival/
https://www.hollandsentinel.com/story/news/columns/2022/08/08/macatawa-water-festival-feature-free-fun-and-information/10240106002/

--Day 1 Research: WATERSHED
What is the impact of human activity on our local rivers and lakes? Students in this program conduct research from day one of college to help support this community project.
https://www.hollandsentinel.com/news/20191216/living-sustainably-research-gives-residents-look-at-lake-macatawa-health

--Annual research presentation to the community in the past the events have been held at Hope College, City Hall, and Herrick District Library.
2022 Presentation
"Join us for an evening to celebrate research and projects completed by Hope College Advanced Environmental Seminar students and Holland Christian Forest School! The Hope College Student research projects include:
Barking up the wrong tree - An analysis of heavy metals in tree bark
In a Pinch! A population and species identification study of crayfish in the Lake Macatawa watershed
Singing in the (Acid) rain - Rain patterns across an urban transect
The rundown on roundup - Quantifying residence times of Glyphosate-based herbicides in Lake Macatawa watershed soils
The Holland Christian Forest School students will present their findings of a study they did to see if the size of bait impacts the size of the fish caught.
The evening will start with refreshments and time to view student posters, and presentations will follow. This event will be hosted by Hope College at the Schaap Science Center."

--Training for Rainscaping
As part of our partnership with the Project Clarity Team we partnered with the MACC, ODC, City of Holland, and Holland Board of Public Works on a grant from the EPA to host a "train the trainer" educational series for community members.
Training for Rainscaping volunteers was held in 2021 and 2022. The first part of the training included classroom instruction that occurred virtually in 2021 and at the DeGraaf Nature Center in 2022. The second part of each training involved visiting a site and practicing what was learned in the first part, including completing a site assessment and making recommendations for adding rainscaping practices to manage stormwater. In 2021, the site portion of the training was held at Keppel House on Hope College's campus on April 21, an unusually cold and snowy day. Eight (8) people participated in the training. In 2022, the site portion was held at the Kooiker Cottage on Hope College's campus on May 24, and ten (10) people participated. Participants were also able to walk just around the corner to see the curb-cut rain garden (see below for details about that project).

--Curb-Cut Rain Garden Project
In the spring of 2022, Hope College worked in partnership with the City of Holland, Macatawa Area Coordinating Council (MACC) and ODC Network to install a curb-cut rain garden in front of their cottage located at 337 College Ave. The City of Holland has been partnering with the MACC and ODC Network since 2020 to incorporate curb-cut rain gardens into road reconstruction projects as part of a grant provided by the EPA's Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Curb-cut rain gardens are gardens installed in the City parkway (area between the street and sidewalk) that have an opening in the curb to allow stormwater to enter from the street, flood the garden and soak into the ground. The garden is excavated to a shallow depth and planted with native grasses and wildflowers, adding color, texture and pollinator habitat while managing stormwater. Planning for the Hope College project began in 2021 when the neighbor at 345 College Ave heard about an opportunity to install a curb-cut rain garden as part of the College Ave reconstruction project. The parkway is contiguous at 337 and 345 College Ave, so it made sense for the neighbors to work together to install one large rain garden. Hope College is working with the neighbor to make sure the rain garden is maintained and will continue to function into the future.

Outdoor Discovery Center (ODC)
"The ODC Network (ODCN) strives to incorporate the principles of racial and ethnic diversity as one of its core organizational values. Achieving and engaging diversity among our Board of Directors and staff is critical for our organization in order to represent and serve the West Michigan community(s) of which we are a part. Our goal is to ensure that these commitments, reinforced by our values, are embedded in our day to day working practices with all our customers, stakeholders, team members, and community members."
https://outdoordiscovery.org/about/nature-for-all/

"The Forum is Michigan’s leading organization for beyond-compliance sustainability practitioners, with a membership program serving our region’s most recognizable brands, largest employers and most innovative entrepreneurs, advocates, and educators. Principally located in the Greater Grand Rapids area, WMSBF is the flagship Michigan Sustainability Forum, with satellite programs in Southwest Michigan and on the Lakeshore, and sister programs across the state. Now in its third decade, the forum strives to meet emerging needs while leveraging the efforts of an increasingly robust community of vendors and educational initiatives working toward similar goals. We are a safe and impactful space for professional and organizational growth, the development of new relationships, and the cocreation of initiatives that enhance environmental stewardship, economic vitality, and social justice." https://wmsbf.org/about/

The WMSBF "MiSBF Campus Sustainability Collective" a cmpus sustainability working group is a community of faculty, staff, alumni, and students from Michigan colleges and universities and community stakeholders that will create a platform for the development of shared capacity initiatives. It is facilitated by West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum and will generate initiatives and shared sustainability practices on campuses and provide resources to assist with sustainability within courses across Michigan.
Specific objectives include:
• Collaboratively promote the discussion of campus sustainability and best practices for colleges and universities
• Create a community of Michigan college/university affiliates and advocates to develop relationships and connections
• Elevate and promote the use of sustainability on campuses
• Utilize collaboration as a combined voice to speak for higher education in Michigan
• Connect college/university stakeholders to resources, vendors, and information related to the use of campus sustainability, facilitating peer-to-peer learning and continuing education

--The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Community-Based Partnerships Presidential Initiative of Hope College and Holland, Michigan
https://hope.edu/offices/mellon-initiatives/
The Mellon Community-based Partnerships Initiative, launched in 2020, connects, in the words of Hope College President Matthew A. Scogin, two of the college’s priorities: “providing outstanding, transformational learning experiences for our students, and serving as a resource for the community that is home not only for Hope but many of us who work here. At a time when our world is characterized by discord, this grant will provide an opportunity for Hope and our community to focus on finding harmony in our diversity.”
https://hope.edu/news/2020/academics/grant-funds-program-to-foster-college-community-partnerships-because-theres-no-place-like-home.html

--The NEA Big Read Lakeshore
"NEA Big Read Lakeshore creates and fosters a culture where reading matters."
We bring our community together around one book and use this shared experience of reading, discussing and exploring the themes of the book as a springboard to learn from and listen to each other.
Recent Article: Wonder While You Wander: Black Children in the Outdoors
https://blogs.hope.edu/thebigread/book-recommendations/wonder-while-you-wander-black-children-in-the-outdoors/
https://bigreadlakeshore.com/
https://bigreadlakeshore.com/partners/

--The Director for the Office of Sustainability has served as a WEGE Prize Judge. She has served during the 2022 and 2023 WEGE Prize Competition Years as a preliminary judging period. http://www.wegeprize.org/competition
http://www.wegeprize.org/judges
"Wege Prize is an annual competition that ignites game-changing solutions for the future by inspiring college/university students around the world to collaborate across institutional, disciplinary, and cultural boundaries to redesign the way economies work. Participants contend for $65,000 (USD) in total cash prizes, all while learning—and helping to show the world—what the future of problem solving looks like."

--Two staff from the Hope College grounds team and the Director for the Office of Sustainability serve on the award winning Holland in Bloom committee. https://www.cityofholland.com/837/Holland-in-Bloom
http://hollandannualreport.com/holland-brings-home-awards-at-america-in-bloom-symposium/

--The Office of Sustainability has also established a film series with a local Creation Care group and regularly hosts film screenings and panel discussion on campus. During Covid we hosted these virtually.